Bryant recently said that he’s open to anyone who wants to reach out and ask for advice, and that he’s had many conversations with Boston Celtics star Isaiah Thomas. But apparently Mr. Ball wants none of it:

“I don’t need no advice from Kobe Bryant. I don’t need advice from Kobe Bryant. Zo’s got to play his game.”

OK, I get that Lonzo Ball needs to play his own game, but if you can get advice from one of the greatest to ever do it, wouldn’t you race to the phone to reach out? As far as LaVar goes, remember Kobe is also one of the greatest marketing machines basketball has ever seen. Shouldn’t Ball be dying to reach out and see if the future Hall of Famer has advice for Big Baller Brand moving forward?

LaVar continued:

“If they’re at practice and he sees something and Lonzo listens to him or whatever, he’s good. … But it’s just not, ‘OK, I’m talking to Kobe, so now I’m going to be good.’ If Kobe sees something that Zo is doing, then go from there. But I’m not trying to pattern after nobody.”

Shocking that LaVar Ball would completely miss the point of what Bryant is offering to the world.

Kobe has said he’s willing to mentor young players and when you look at the list of guys he talks to regularly, it’s obvious he’s helped them. That list includes Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Gordon Hayward, along with Thomas. Notice something about those five guys? Their games have all taken off in the last few years as Bryant was beginning to embrace his role as a mentor to the next generation of basketball players. Maybe it’s a coincidence but there are worse sources to get assistance from.

So yeah, we just got yet another example of LaVar Ball being a blowhard, thinking he always knows best and completely missing the point of something. It’s become a daily occurrence at this point.

Ryan Phillips

Ryan is a San Diego-based blogger who is a 10-year veteran of the sports writing world. He holds a journalism degree from Indiana University (yes he left San Diego for Bloomington, Indiana voluntarily). He has no pets and a crippling addiction to HBOGo.